The Validity and Reliability of the Turkish Form of the Early Childhood Assessment Scale

WOS: 000583332600008The study aimed to adapt the scale, originally named 'Devereux Early Childhood Assessment (DECA-P2)' and developed by Paul A. LeBuffe & Jack A. Naglieri in 1999, into Turkish and to examine the validity and reliability of the Turkish form of the scale. the participants in the study were parents (621) and teachers (149) of children aged 33-66 months attending independent kindergartens affiliated with the Izmir Provincial Directorate of National Education in the first semester of the 2015-2016 academic year. According to the results of the CFA, it was seen that the items on the teacher and parent forms were grouped in two subscales, namely total protective factors and behavioral concerns, similar to the original. Total protective factors are further separated into the following subscales: initiative, self-regulation, and attachment/relationships. the item loads of the teacher form of the scale were found to be between 0.22 and 0.74 and the results of CFA determined that the model fit well (chi(2)= 3,667.12, sd=659, p=0.0, RMSEA=0.08, AGFI=0.93, GFI=0.94 and SRMR=0.07) Internal consistency coefficient for the entire teacher form was found to be 0.91. the item loads of the parent form of the scale were found to be between 0.21 and 0.55 and the results of CFA determined that the model fit well (chi(2)= 2,217.85, sd=659, p=0.0, RMSEA=0.06, AGFI=0.92; GFI=0.93, and SRMR=0.06) the internal consistency coefficient for the entire parent form was found to be 0.85. According to the results of the validity and reliability work, it was determined that both teacher and parent forms of the DECA-P2 scale can be used as a valid and reliable measurement tool